A Full Moon Isn't Just for Lovers and Wolves...

Intro by Skip Cohen

Always great tips and stunning images. This new tip from Ossian makes the moon the star of each shot with some solid tips to help you get the right exposure and create stunning images of your own.

As I always remind everybody, Ossian is an amazing teacher and guide. Think about how the quality of your images would improve spending a week with him on a tour. Keep track of his whereabouts with a click on the link below. His next trip is in November with Vision and Vine, but you'll find all of the scheduled trips thus far on the Ciclismo Classico/Travel Journeys website.

Ciclsimo Classico & Travel Vision Journeys

Tilcara in Jujuy Province in the North West of Argentina 1/1600 f/5.6 ISO 280 shot at 400mm

by Ossian Lindholm
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Having an evening sky filled with a full moon isn’t just a great attraction for lovers and wolves. It’s especially incredible for photographers and every artist wants a great shot of the moon.  I thought it would be helpful to share some of the “secrets” of great moon shots.

Everything starts with a good telephoto lens, preferably a 300-500mm along with a tripod. Next you have to meter the light reflected off the moon’s surface.

In order to do that I put my camera in manual exposure mode. I set the camera to spot metering. When I’m ready to capture the image, I point my camera at the moon, being sure it's in the center of my view finder.  I choose the correct exposure value I want and click the shutter.

Try and always choose a lower ISO and higher shutter speeds. The earth rotates and so the moon is always moving in the sky.
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Just a reminder: Once you’ve metered the light on the moon, remember, it will be the same throughout the night. You don’t need to change the exposure value and can just enjoy taking pictures of the full moon.

Arizaro salt flat situated at 11,600 ft in Salta province in the North West of Argentina. 1/1000 f5.0 ISO 400 shot at 150 mm